Hunger During the Holidays

mangostock / Getty Images/iStockphoto

mangostock / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Ted Remsnyder

The holiday season is the perfect time for families to gather around their dining room tables and share feasts featuring beloved standards such as turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie. But while the upcoming celebrations are joyous occasions for most, many local families are affected by the epidemic of hunger and food insecurity that constantly puts their next meal in doubt.

According to a recent U.S. Dept. of Agriculture study, 12.7 percent (15.8 million) of U.S. households faced food insecurity – not having the resources to adequately feed everyone in the family – at some time in 2015, and that includes the during holidays.

Food banks play a vital role in fighting back against food insecurity, helping to make sure that local families don’t have to go without during the holidays and beyond. While food pantries typically receive a surge of contributions this time of year, they also request help during the other 10 months of the year, so local families always have a place to turn to when they’re in need.

“We are always grateful to everyone who contributes during the holidays and we hope that they continue to think of us during the year,” Foodshare President & CEO Jason Jakubowski says. “During Thanksgiving we are specifically asking that you donate a turkey to help more of our neighbors celebrate the holiday and also $30 to support our efforts to fight hunger throughout the year.

"Financial donations allow Foodshare to provide fresh fruits and vegetables, in addition to canned goods," Jakubowski says. "Holiday donations are always appreciated but we have to remember that hunger is an issue year-round.”

The Bloomfield-based Foodshare, which serves Hartford and Tolland counties, distributed 11.5 million meals last year to a network of 300 local partner programs.

Families that live along the Connecticut shoreline, from Madison to East Lyme, are helped by the Shoreline Soup Kitchens & Pantries. Executive Director Ellen Rabin says the residents her group helps are concerned about government cuts to food assistance programs. “There’s a lot of anxiety right now due to the state budget,” Rabin notes. “The threats to SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) on the federal level increases anxiety. On the shoreline, a lot of people work during the summer months and need to get through the winter, and the dollar’s just not going as far.”

Food pantries provide crucial relief to families that are faced with the difficult choice of spending their hard-earned money on groceries or medical and heating bills.

“We are very happy that we’re here to help out by providing them with a grocery cart full of nutritious food to feed their family,” Rabin says. “They can come out to a pantry once a week to fill their carts with meat and eggs, and produce.”

While Foodshare is requesting that donors provide turkeys, the Shoreline Soup Kitchen & Pantries requests local gift cards as they are not able to store frozen turkeys.

“We are encouraging people to give gift cards from the local markets rather than a 12-pound turkey," Rabin says. "It’s very difficult to handle and store frozen turkeys. We will make sure that everyone in the 11 towns we serve has a bountiful meal with everything from cranberries to stuffing to yams. But trying to give out frozen turkeys is just logistically difficult, and not everyone has a kitchen capable of cooking a turkey.”

Food banks need items like low-sodium soups, whole grain pasta, easy one-can meals such as ravioli with sauce, and each organization has its own specific needs. “Lately, for whatever reason, there’s been a shortage of rice, but we’re always looking for protein like tuna, beans and peanut butter,” Rabin says. “We also make sure there’s always fresh food. That’s why we absolutely appreciate food drives and donation of that sort, but at this time of year it’s sometimes easier for us to purchase at a highly discounted rate the food that we know we need to provide a holiday meal.”

Volunteering your time is an excellent way to offer support, too, and the Shoreline organization works in cooperation with groups as varied as the Rotary Club and the Boy Scouts. Food insecurity is also a problem that affects all age ranges, from children to the elderly. “We see a mixture of single moms and some very large families,” Rabin says. “Also, 10 percent of our guests are seniors.”

The ramifications of food insecurity are vast, as children’s grades can suffer without proper nutrition and lack of food can impact an adult’s performance at work as well. Food insecurity can strike families without warning due to a lost job or medical emergency, making the work that groups such as Foodshare and Shoreline Soup Kitchens more important than ever.

“The role of food banks across the state, and across the country, is to act as a safety net,” Rabin says. “Hunger is a terrible thing in a country full of abundance. People are going to sleep hungry or not knowing where they’re going to eat tomorrow. So we’re a really important safety net, and we’re not going to go away regardless of any cuts on any governmental level. We’re a grassroots organization that’s here to take care of our neighbors. The support between volunteers and donors is tremendous.”